The Central Bank is spending about $200 million a day buying foreign currency to slow the ruble's best start in at least 19 years, according to estimates by Citigroup, as a stronger currency helps spur record demand for the country's local bonds. The Central Bank is spending about $200 million a day buying foreign...

... of an 11-month-old girl. A 31-year-old man from the town of Mineralniye Vody (Mineral Waters) was sentenced to 25 years behind bars for the rape and murder of an 11-month-old girl. The pedophile, Vladimir Manayenko, is ordered to pay 1 million rubles ($33,000) to the baby's mother. He also cannot perform any work involving children for the next 20 years. The court established that in May 2011 the perpetrator was drunk and home alone with his roommate's baby when he committed the assault. He...

... Rublyovo-Uspenskoye Shosse by the end of 2013. "It was partly the Moscow city government's idea as a way to ease pressure on the road network," a Russian Railways spokesman told The Moscow Times by telephone. Russian Railways has agreed to spend 1 billion rubles ($32 million) on infrastructure for the service, including a new terminal building at the station and laying a new third lane of tracks from Belorussky Station as far as Rabochy Posyolok, just inside the Moscow Ring Road. The rest of the line will...

Ireland, one of the countries worst hit by the financial crisis, is looking to boost its economy by attracting Russian tourists to its shore, and Wednesday the Irish Embassy presented a sales pitch for its country to local tourist firms. Ireland, one of the countries worst hit by the financial crisis, is looking to boost its economy by attracting Russian tourists to its shore, and Wednesday the Irish Embassy presented a sales pitch for its country...

The Agriculture Ministry set minimum prices for state grain purchases this year, according to the ministry order published in Rossiiskaya Gazeta. The minimum price for the third- grade milling wheat is set at 5,000 rubles ($158) a ton in the European part of Russia and at 4,700 rubles in the Asian part, according to the statement. Prices for the fourth-grade milling wheat are 4,450 rubles in the Asian part and 4,650 rubles a ton in European territories, it said...

The city construction department will select general contractors for the reconstruction of major throughways at a cost of almost 50 billion rubles ($1.57 billion). The city construction department this month will select general contractors for the reconstruction of major throughways at a cost of almost 50 billion rubles ($1.57 billion) and is to select general contractors for the reconstruction...

RusHydro boosted nine-month profit 19 percent because of unrepeated finance expenses in the previous year period, the utility said Tuesday on its website. Net income climbed to 30.6 billion rubles ($1 billion) from 25.6 billion rubles a year earlier. RusHydro had net finance income of 366 million rubles this year, compared with costs of 3.11 billion rubles a year earlier. Revenue fell 34 percent to 197 billion rubles. Vneshekonombank chief...

Sberbank posted 29.2 billion rubles ($963 million) in net profits under Russian accounting standards for January, up 9.4 percent on the same period last year due to strong net interest income. Sberbank posted 29.2 billion rubles ($963 million) in net profits...

Gazprom Neft plans to almost triple investment to upgrade its Moscow refinery to 20 billion rubles ($630 million) this year. Gazprom Neft spent about 7 billion rubles in 2011, according to an article in the company's corporate magazine published on its web site Friday. The company plans to spend at least 66 billion rubles through 2020 to increase...

The city-run Moscow Center for Children's and Family Leisure and Health, or MCC, might receive 500 billion rubles ($16 billion) to build kindergartens, housing, schools and medical facilities. The city-run Moscow Center for Children's and Family Leisure and Health, or MCC, might receive 500 billion rubles ($16 billion) to build kindergartens, housing...

Russia's oil wealth Reserve Fund rose to 1.86 trillion rubles ($61.4 billion) on Feb. 1, compared with 811.5 billion rubles a month earlier, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday. The figures indicated that the fund, established to insure the budget against oil price shocks, had received a one-off injection...

... desire for tourists is to boost the city's coffers. Foreign tourists spend more than Russians visiting the city, with one report estimating that they more than double Russian visitors' spending. The study by Fontanka.ru put tourists spending at 24,000 rubles ($775) over a three-day trip compared with 11,000 rubles for Russians. "All that we have — cultural treasures and heritage — can be monetized only through the development of tourism," said Sergei Korneyev, head of the northwestern...

... sample a selection of Russian and European dishes. In fact, the restaurant proudly calls itself a "home" — a description that is not far from the truth because it offers affordable Russian food. A meal for two without alcohol costs 2,000 rubles ($65). Rokabu ( rokabu.allvrn.ru ) is a local fast-food chain with six locations offering traditional Russian blini with jam, cheese or ham, different kinds of salads and soups, and a selection of alcoholic cocktails and beer. Lunch for two with...

... company called Litrovoz can help. Its business model works as follows: a customer gives a loan to a courier who comes to him, and as collateral he receives a bottle that is the property of the courier. The cost of delivery of the collateral is from 200 rubles to 500 rubles ($7 to $17), depending on which part of the city you are in. The delivery charge is included in the collateral amount if your order is less than 1,000 rubles. If it's more, delivery is free. The courier who brought a Vedomosti correspondent...

Two masked robbers armed with what appeared to be a pistol, held up a Moscow post office branch Monday morning and made off with 2.5 million rubles ($83,000), in the second successful robbery of a city post office since Friday. Two masked robbers armed with what appeared to be a pistol, held up a Moscow post office branch Monday morning and made off with 2.5 million rubles ($83...

... author, told The Moscow Times on customary condition of anonymity. Following November's first reading of the bill, lawmakers raised the maximum fines for promoting nontraditional sexual relationships. The fine for individuals was raised from 3,000 rubles to 5,000 rubles ($170), and for officials the amount went from 5,000 rubles to 50,000 rubles ($1,725). The fine for legal entities also increased tenfold, from 50,000 rubles to 500,000 rubles ($17,250), Interfax reported . Maxim Reznik, a St...

Military contractors misspent more than 25 billion rubles ($822 million) in 2011, or almost 3 percent of the total value of all defense orders for the year, the Federal Service on Defense Contracts said Friday. Military contractors misspent more than 25 billion rubles ($822 million) in 2011, or almost...

... Park and get a ride on a sled powered by his canines. Rides are offered on weekends from noon until 7:00 p.m. The schedule for the weekdays changes, depending on the number of park visitors. The charge for rides, which are regulated by the park, is 250 rubles ($8) per child and 400 rubles per adult for 200-meter rides in Sokolniki. At Gorky Park the rates are 150 rubles and 300 rubles, respectively. One dog can pull a child, while adults sometimes need two. If a customer yearns for the true feeling...

... Prokhorov in an open letter on compensation for losses of funds set aside for payments to Norilsk employees. Akifiyeva said that as a result of the fund’s management by Norilsk’s top executives, led by Prokhorov, the fund lost 3.1 billion rubles ($100 million). In 2008, the fund posted a balance-sheet loss of 2.1 billion rubles, including 1.7 billion rubles on pension reserves financed by Norilsk Nickel and its employees, and 400 million rubles on pension savings. In addition, the fund...

The Federal Security Service paid over 2 million rubles ($67,000) for an order of nearly 100 typewriters, or about 22,000 rubles per machine. The Federal Security Service paid over 2 million rubles ($67,000) for an order of nearly 100 typewriters, or about 22,000 rubles per machine, the marker.ru news...